Herodotus 1.132.2-3

Greek Learning Greek
1

This is the (emended) text as edited by Wilson in the new OCT:
ἐπεὰν δὲ διαμιστύλας κατὰ μέλεα τὸ ἱρήιον ἑψήσῃ τὰ κρέα, ὑποπάσας ποίην ὡς ἁπαλωτάτην, μάλιστα δὲ τὸ τρίφυλλον, ἐπὶ ταύτης ἔθηκε ὦν πάντα τὰ κρέα. [3] διαθέντος δὲ αὐτοῦ Μάγος ἀνὴρ παρεστεὼς ἐπαείδει οἴα δή· θεογονίην ἐκεῖνοι λέγουσι εἶναι τὴν ἐπαοιδήν: ἄνευ γὰρ δὴ Μάγου οὔ σφι νόμος ἐστὶ θυσίας ποιέεσθαι.

The passage in question as in Hude (from Perseus):
Μάγος ἀνὴρ παρεστεὼς ἐπαείδει θεογονίην, οἵην δὴ ἐκεῖνοι λέγουσι εἶναι τὴν ἐπαοιδήν

What does ἐπαείδει οἴα δή exactly mean? Is it something like “sings a song of some sort”, “sings a song (whatever it is)”?

Thanks!

2

I think so. L&S has

4. οἷα δὴ εἴπας saying so and so, Hdt.1.86 (cf. “ὅσος” 111.2) : later with other Particles, v. infr. VI.

3

Yes that will be it, presuming οἷα (neut.pl.) not οἴα. Analogous with the linked ὅσος δή (LSJ ὅσος III.2)—characteristically Herodotean it seems.

It’s used differently in the Cyrus story when he gets to his parental home (1.122):
Νοστήσαντα δέ μιν ἐς τοῦ Καμβύσεω τὰ οἰκία ἐδέξαντο οἱ γεινά
μενοι, καὶ δεξάμενοι ὡς ἐπύθοντο, μεγάλως ἀσπάζοντο οἷα
δὴ ἐπιστάμενοι αὐτίκα τότε τελευτῆσαι, ἱστόρεόν τε ὅτεῳ
τρόπῳ περιγένοιτο.
That’s a fairly common use, used much like ατε. Didn’t we deal with this or something like it a little while back?

4

Thanks, both of you! It’s οἷα all right, my mistake.